Visiting filmmakers announced for 53rd Athens International Film + Video Festival

From April 13-19, 2026, the 53rd Athens International Film + Video Festival (AIFVF) will return to the Athena Cinema for a celebration of global cinema. Over the course of seven days, more than 200 films from upwards of 60 countries will screen in uptown Athens, Ohio, reaffirming the festival’s longstanding commitment to bold, independent and innovative filmmaking.

This year’s distinguished visiting artist lineup includes filmmaker and activist Boots Riley, multidisciplinary artist Amy Jenkins, filmmaker and educator Angelo Madsen and the artist duo Beth Stephens and Annie Sprinkle. Each will present their work and engage with audiences in discussion throughout the week.

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Riley, known for his incisive political voice and genre-defying storytelling, brought international attention to issues of income inequality with his dystopian satire “Sorry to Bother You.” The film’s sharp critique of corporate power and class struggle sparked widespread public discourse. His absurdist comedic series about a 13ft tall Black man, “I'm a Virgo,” debuted in 2023 to critical acclaim. Beyond film, Riley is the founding member and lead vocalist of The Coup and a member of Street Sweeper Social Club. A longtime community activist, he has been deeply involved in grassroots organizing, including within Occupy Oakland and The Young Comrades.

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Jenkins, whose work explores familial relationships and gender identity, brings a multidisciplinary approach to documentary practice. Supported by organizations including the Ford Foundation and Sundance, she has earned recognition across the contemporary art and film worlds. Her debut feature documentary “Instructions on Parting” previously won Best Feature Documentary at the Athens International Film and Video Festival, marking a meaningful return to Athens for the artist. Her work has been reviewed in major publications including The New York Times and ARTnews.

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Madsen’s films and multimedia projects examine the intersections of personal and collective histories, kinship, subcultural experience and the politics of desire. His work has screened at leading international festivals, including the Berlin International Film Festival, Sundance Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and the New York Film Festival, among many others. A recipient of fellowships from Creative Capital, United States Artists and the Guggenheim Foundation, Madsen continues to shape contemporary conversations around identity and representation in cinema.

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Stephens and Sprinkle, longtime collaborators, create multimedia art centered on love, sexuality and queer ecologies. Their wide-ranging practice includes performance art, gallery exhibitions, walking tours, eco-activist symposiums and publishing. Their book, “Assuming the Ecosexual Position—The Earth as Lover,” chronicles their art-life partnership and environmental activism. At AIFVF, they will present “Playing with Fire—An Ecosexual Emergency,” the third installment in their feature trilogy exploring environmental issues through an ecosexual lens.

Founded in 1973, the Athens International Film + Video Festival has spent more than five decades championing independent, underground and marginalized voices in cinema. Organized by the Athens Center for Film and Video, a project of the Chaddock + Morrow College of Fine Arts at Ohio University, AIFVF continues to serve as a vital platform for experimental, narrative, animated, documentary, short-form and feature films from around the world.

The full festival schedule and line-up will be announced mid-March and be available at www.athensfest.org

Thanks to generous support from Arts for Ohio, all screenings and events remain free to students.